Demand for fiber-powered broadband rising
The appetite for fiber-powered broadband services in the country is growing significantly, driven by changing consumer habits, particularly the shift to online video viewing, according to telco giant PLDT.
“Throughout the country, the demand is for fiber-powered home broadband that can provide quality viewing of online video,” PLDT and Smart senior vice president and head of consumer business market development Oscar Enrico Reyes Jr. said.
“People’s growing appetite for online video has helped raise the broadband penetration of PLDT Home to an alltime high of just under two million customers in the first nine months, an increase of eight percent year-on-year in unique data service subscribers. This has boosted Home revenues by 12 percent in the third quarter to P27.3 billion,” he added.
Reyes said a growing number of Filipinos are shifting from traditional broadcast television to online services because video on demand services allow them to watch the programs they prefer whenever they want.
Citing a recent study on The State of Online Video 2018 done by Limelight Networks, PLDT said viewers in the Philippines watch the most online video each week and eight hours and 46 minutes out of 10 countries that included US, Japan, France, Germany, Singapore and South Korea.
To capitalize on the trend in which Filipinos are now watching more online video and broadcast video, PLDT has taken steps to further improve the viewing experience of its customers.
In the nine months to September, PLDT Home customers got a free speed boost for fiber broadband plans.
PLDT Home also launched a partnership with Google WiFi to extend fiber-powered WiFi data coverage to every part of the customer’s residence.
“We’ve found that providing services like Google WiFi significantly improves the customer experience by ensuring that all parts of the home have strong broadband service,” Reyes said.
PLDT has allocated a record high P58 billion in capital expenditures this year to include the modernization and expansion of its fixed and mobile networks.
The continuing expansion of PLDT’s fiber optic cable network, which provides the vital foundation for the development of the group’s fixed and mobile networks, has enabled it to surpass several key fullyear 2018 rollout targets three months ahead of schedule.
By the end of September, PLDT’s total fiber footprint – consisting mostly of transmission and distribution facilities – had reached 221,000 kilometers, exceeding the 2018 target of 210,000 kilometers.
“PLDT Home has also boosted its capacity to 2.25 million Fibr-Fast broadband ports as of the third quarter, more than double the count as of the end of 2017 and above the 2.2 million ports targeted for 2018,” he added.